Palestinian Ambassador to Vienna Shafi called for a ban on trade with the settlements Israel has established in the occupied Palestinian territories to be implemented across the European Union.
Shafi said he welcomed the trade ban announced on September 8 by France, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Canada and the United Kingdom. Calling for the decisions to be implemented swiftly, Shafi said the step taken by the 12 countries would not be sufficient on its own.
Companies and banks should also be included in the boycott
Shafi said the issue of the settlements was not limited to trade in products originating from those areas. He said construction and infrastructure companies, as well as banks providing financing, were also part of the economic structure supporting the settlements.
Shafi said this entire economic structure should be boycotted if the settlements were to be ended. He expressed hope that the decision by the 12 countries would be a first step toward ending Israel’s impunity, while stating that it was not sufficient on its own.
Shafi calls on the EU to adopt a common decision
Shafi said the decisions sent an important political message. He said they showed that the international community did not recognize the settlements as part of Israel and considered them contrary to international law.
Shafi recalled that Germany and Italy had not joined the joint statement and said the European Union should boycott trade with Israeli settlements as a bloc. Describing this step as a positive development going forward, Shafi nevertheless said the decision was clearly insufficient.
Divisions in Europe’s Palestine policy
Shafi argued that European countries did not have a common foreign policy on Palestine. He said some countries, such as Spain, described developments in Gaza as genocide, while some European countries had also recognized the State of Palestine.
Shafi said Germany continued to sell weapons to Israel and noted that the differing positions of European countries had prevented them from reaching a common decision on trade with the settlements.
Emphasis on international law and Gaza
Shafi said they expected countries to comply with international law, rather than pursue a pro-Palestinian policy. Referring to the advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in 2024, Shafi said the occupation must end and third countries should help bring about that process.
Shafi also referred to Nicaragua’s case against Germany and South Africa’s genocide case against Israel, saying that international legal institutions must be respected.
Shafi said Israel had decided to close the United Kingdom’s consulate serving the Palestinians in East Jerusalem in response to the commercial sanctions, describing the move as an overreaction.
Shafi said political parties in Israel were competing to take the most extreme positions during the country’s electoral process and called for developments in Gaza to remain on the international community’s agenda. He said the world’s attention should be directed toward what he described as the ongoing genocide in Gaza.
Israel had announced that it had decided to close the United Kingdom’s consulate serving the Palestinians in East Jerusalem in response to the commercial sanctions.
